‘I’m taking nothing for granted,’ Gallagher says heading into second season

The Canadiens’ Brendan Gallagher was in Toronto on Tuesday to take part in the NHLPA’s rookie showcase, even though he isn’t a rookie anymore.

Gallagher was a finalist for the Calder Trophy last season as the NHL’s top rookie, losing out to Jonathan Huberdeau of the Florida Panthers. Gallagher finished the season with 15-13-28 totals in 44 games. The only rookies to post more points were Edmonton’s Nail Yakupov (17-14-31), Huberdeau (14-17-31) and Ottawa’s Cory Conacher (11-18-29).

“This summer I prepared the same way, did the exact same things,” Gallagher told The Canadian Press about his offseason training. “I’m taking nothing for granted.”

He added: “I don’t want to be complacent about a first year. I know a lot of guys have had good first years and struggle in their second so I’m aware of that. The most important thing is winning. I just want to be part of a winning hockey team and for me to contribute in that I need to continue to build on my season last year.”

Gallagher also commented on the Canadiens’ offseason signings:

“Daniel Briere (is) a very skilled, a smaller guy I can learn from and who I’m excited to be around. Douglas Murray is a presence to play against to say the least, a big body who is going to be effective on the penalty kill and will fit nicely into our core of six defencemen.

“Having (George Parros) around, I think, just makes everyone feel more comfortable. We had guys (last year) who were willing to stand up . . . you look at a guy like Brandon Prust who would go fight (Toronto forward) Frazier McLaren, who is a much bigger guy, and he did very well. But for us to have Prust on the ice is big as well.”

LOL! Front you kill me! Couldn’t agree with you more, I love dolly too!
PS: love your posts, they’re short, sweet, often funny and to the point and my favorite part of them: “Saludos Amigos”!
One question though: how do you stay so coherent while consuming so much booze? LOL!!

If anyone cares about this sort of thing, the ratings for the top 50 players in NHL 14 are out, and Subban is an 88 — tied for 34th overall with Byfuglien, and behind guys like Kronwall, Seabrook and Burns.

Aaaaand, this post is a pretty good illustration of how desperate I am for the season to start up, so we actually have something hockey-related to talk about. : )

Roy, I’d actually take the opposite view. Agreed, we’re hearing weird things out of Toronto about PK’s standing, but he can’t exactly be underrated AND win the Norris, no? And Karlsson is great. If you’re saying he’s overrated defensively compared to PK, I’d agree. But yikes he’s a guy who makes things happen.

LOL Cautious! Hearing that edge of desperation from a distance of 3000 miles!

PLEASE: H-O-C-K-E-Y!!!

Problem is, the numbers of posters with lots of interesting non-hockey stuff to say (yourself included, if I recall).

I never look up the weather here in Ireland. I just look out the window and bring a raincoat even if it’s sunny. And I feel the same about player ratings. Ok, in someone’s universe there are 87 NHLers better than the current Norris holder, just not in mine. Or perhaps in theirs? Isn’t it likely that many/most/all players couldn’t give a banana what TSN or THN or whoever has to say? In fact, it must surely be a blast to be rated 87th, but be a superstar, get on the Olympic team, score game-winning goals, win trophies etc!

I did something I don’t normally do. I suggested to my 14-yr-old daughter that she reading that particular exchange (perhaps sparked by someone commiserating with anyone rearing a teenage girl). She laughed and said that what you guys wrote (and I had briefly described the wide age demographic represented here) is the same as what all her friends are saying. Now that is some serious consensus.

She also sympathised a little, suggesting it was almost inevitable for a child-star-turned-adult to get into such difficulties.

You know what, I teach teenagers every day, and in essence they are by and large overwhelmingly good — not angelic, no no, but good — and full of potential. So every day I look at them and believe, as you say, that there is hope for the human race.

Ok I went Luke (I will do anything suggested by that avatar which never fails to brighten my day!).

And you’re right about how it exacerbates the shock of seeing where she went next. The Jolene vid seems fairly highly processed and slick, a bit contrived, but you can hear talent and wish that she didn’t resort to LCD.

I always found it interesting that 99% of the current popular music artists all happen to be attractive and nobody batted an eye at this. It’s like there is a direct correlation between talent and beauty!

But for the child stars who may be “cute” when they are younger, they may not grow up to look like Gwen Stefan, Katy Perry or George Michaels. Like most people they will probably look average. So that means they need to try super hard to lose their “cute” label, and transition into the “sexy” pop-star label in order to survive in the industry. They have to go to the extremes, like what we saw Sunday night with Miley, to receive any attention at all. It sucks, but the industry creates these negative role models for children, and the entertainers have to follow along because if they don’t the producers will find somebody who will. The same goes for the sexualization of women in film. There needs to be a 4th wave of feminism, where all women stand up against oppression. Like John Lennon said, women are the nigger of the world, and even though they represent over 50% of the planets population, they are not treated as equals. Even in North America. I hope Hilary Clinton wins the 2016 election (even though that brings up a huge nepotism discussion in politics. You know if Clinton were to win in 2012, and Jeb Bush wins in 2016, that would have been 28 years in a row where only two families were in charge of the biggest country in the world!), and that she is able to be a strong role model for young women everywhere.

Wow! Amazing post!
The depressing thing (or one of them) is when the fact that there is, as you say, an “industry” behind something you like starts to shine through, or burst through, the veneer. And those industries have absolutely voracious appetites, devouring all, spewing all afterwards to make space for more. The media, for eg, is often referred to as a beast, has to be fed every day. Cosmetics industry — sometimes I send the boys to another teacher and have a 1 vs 15 session with the girls on the whole obscene business of persuading teenagers they are inadequate without make-up (with apologies to anyone here in that business).

And I have ranted here often about the NHL: its industrial essence so often shamelessly exposed.

(You filled my belly with fire, Stevie! Then you mentioned Jeb — are we really looking at that possibility? — and I immediately wilted.)

@Stevie.Ray
Poignant posting and if fairness rules the day, there won’t be harsh backlash but I recognize the neck position (as in sticking out your neck) as I have done that on this site in the past, and will unlikely do again. John Lennon did startle with his charged words but time has passed and the message is now more hidden. Thumbs up to you for your guts in sharing these thoughts. (Beautiful women have always possessed a spell-binding power, and more are using it).

In the US a far greater number of players shoot right than in Canada….his versatility (as he himself points out and him being a lefty work to his advantage. I would not put him on the team right now either…but from the littel we know of Galchenyuk I wouldn’t ever want to bet against him.

That and the fact hey know he may be one of their best players moving forward if not heir best prospect….would be a great experience to get him there…..4 years is a long time away …I would say he is a 3 to 1 longshot but he has time to prove himself and because of his combo of shootout ability and maturity…. skill level…virtually everything cited in that article…there is a pretty strong case to be made should he come out of the gates playing well.

Oh I don’t doubt he is a longshot…but the fact he is such a lock in shootouts make him very intriguing along withteverything else that was said about him. Let’s jsut pretend he played for a non playoff market and was given a teams top wingers and players to play wiht on the pp….I don;t think it unreasonable to assume he already has the talent offensively to be a poitn per player guy….Yakupov and Huberdeau both got better ice and yet there was Galchenyuk right there with them. This despite missing a whole year of hockey….teh kid is a legit superstar in the making….and the making wil come as soon as the organization gives him the opportunity too.

This is the right approach because Montreal is a playoff market where offense isn’t all that is required….if he becomes a center…however if they choose to make him a winger and have him focus on offense? You have somewhere between Patrick Kane and Rick Nash IMO.

So…it is pretty obvious below that the general consensus is that Pleks and Eller are the best two centers according to the fans…yet DD will play with the teams best winger(unless Galchenyuk takes off with more icetime)…and DD has been successful with him so I don’t see it changing. This sounds like a problem….but with Galchenyuk, Gallagher, Briere, Gionta, Bourque and Prust to compliment Pacioretty….this team is as deep as an up front. 10 top 9 forwards and 8 or 9 NHL dmen deep…..quite a quick little turn of events really. I epect an early season trade of some sort. once a pecking order is established.

Vault them into playoff territory? Barring an injury plague the team should be an easy playoff team IMO. IF I were picking I would guess somewhere between 4 and 6 in the conference. My concern is not the regular season it is the second season in the NRHL (New Rules Hockey League)…once the NRHL begins playoffs Montreal becomes vulnerable.

When Montreal has been relatively lucky with injuries (2007-08, 2012-13) they have had brilliant regular season performances.

When they have been decimated by injuries (2008-09, 2011-12), they have been abysmal.

When they have normal luck (2009-10, 2010-11), they’ve been a playoff bubble team.

There is perhaps a bit more talent here this season, and I’m hoping that their relative youth will insulate them more from the injury bug. But Markov, Plekanec and Gionta are all hugely important to the Habs and all have got a lot of mileage on their odometer. An injury to any one of those three guys could be devastating.

All true…but the team is poised ofr something special very soon…they have essentially two core groups…the leadership and know how to win group in Markov, Gionta, Briere, Pleks and then they have the youth revolution with several guys who are already near elite at their positions…..Subban, Pacioretty and Price…..then they have a younger group to add to them that is equal if not better in Eller, Galchenyuk and Gallagher.
The middle support group of Prust, Bourque, Emelin, DD, OMOen, Gorges, Murray,etc is pretty darn good as well. The toughness is now there….exciting times are very possible.
Depth? So two dmen have the potential to be NHL palyers right now in Tinordia nd Beaulieu….LEblanc is somehwere in the mix if his injury heals, Collberg, Hudon,etc,etc….the team is in a great place because of that one really bad season and sthe accelerated development of some of the younger players…I like the team…I would love to somehow get another gritty character guy like Brendan Morrow into the mix…but this team has some serious potential this seaso and most definitely next year if healthy.

I am not as optimistic. Big question marks this season: Emelin, Gionta returning from injury. Will Price continue his average goalie routine or finally get better? Smaller questions: how will Murray and Parros perform on their new team? Will Chucky and Gally not have the sophomore jinx? Will Bourque continue his good to great play from last season?
Like I said before the Murray signing, a 10th to 12th place team.
Now, they are a bubble team.

Re. Enforcer presence and the myth of injury reduction. Is the middle path here an acceptance that Gallagher, though he wasn’t actually injured last year, excited some opposing players to take liberties, and will benefit from having a number of truculent team-mates whose presence might dissuade at least some players from taking such liberties?

(With apologies for the appalling construction of that last sentence).

NFL, CFL, End of the Baseball season (playoff race is really exciting) pre season hockey sports get really great in the middle of September, I just dislike the summer ending and going back to school and work 😛

PK Subban has all the tools to be the best D-man in the NHL for years to come. I cannot fathom a scenario where he does not make the OLY team and play a pivotal role…how many D-men would be traded straight up for PK right now – given his age, ability, contract and upside.

Isn’t it funny how some talk about a decline in Canadian hockey? Look at that freaking list of defenceman . Some really great players are not going to the games. Just incredible the amount of the talent pool where a player like PK is not a shoo in.

I liked how Ray Ferraro summed up why he likes Price to start for the team. He simply said, I like Price because I think he is the best goalie, that he is better than the other guys on the list. This is a guy who calls games from ice level and has the most credibility on that panel as a result, especially given his former NHL experience.

Excellent question, unfortunately this site has no way of getting you that answer…. I am trying to think of other sites where they could get you a detailed answer and where also your input would be respected a great deal more….. just drawing a blank on where that might be. 🙂

I thought the Chargers were up for the 1st overall pick, but we’re stuck with a really good quarterback in Philip Rivers, he’ll get us a couple extra wins that’ll hurt our chances. Meanwhile, I agree with you that the Bills will be neck and neck with the Jaguars, but I think the Raiders have a really really good chance at 0-16 this year.

I already find it hard to bring myself to cheer for a bunch of spoiled cliche spitting shine the light on me millionaire brats. But, if Subban is left of the starting team Canada roster I think I will cheer for them to lose. It will once again proof that hockey Canada is a f#$%n’ old boys club and perhaps will more clearly than ever indicate that Subban is racially discriminated against.

Under “You might also like” I now get a picture of Miley Cyrus (I think she’s taking a dump). I am highly offended (as a human being, not as a man or women). Since I also get the Leblanc trade and Markov returning from 1-2 years ago, does it mean I’m going to see her for thenext couple of years???

I run Ghostery and AdBlock Plus in Chrome and I never see these ads. Ghostery can cause a bit of havoc with some websites, but I find it useful to know how many programs are trying to access my browsing data.

You can set Ghostery to be less restrictive, having it block only Outbrain, who are responsible for those ads.

Scary what young starlets have to do nowadays to be relevant. Britney, Paulina, Miley. For every Natalie Portman there’s three or four of these paparazzi-besotted trollops who have very little left in their arsenal to shock and hold our attention.

I think Subban right now is pretty much the total package on D. If anything the only area of improvement is that I’d like to see him get a little meaner, NOT in terms of fighting, but more in terms of throwing more of those famous hits, and dishing the stick out on guys who try to chirp him/get in his face.

He would be harassed a lot less and his performance would increase even more.

5 (CRAZY RANDOM!!!) QUESTIONS:
1. Will Markov play for Russia in the Olympics?
2. Which would you rather do – attend a pre-season game at the Bell Center, or watch an open practice? Why?
3. Who is more likely to spend more than 1 year in Montreal: Parros or Murray?
4. Since MT says Galchenyuk will start on the wing, who are your 1-4 centers (in order) – Pleks, DD, Eller, White? Or…?
5. If Subban is put on the 1st pair D, will his performance dip?
BONUS: If you were the Habs, would you be inclined to put that pressure on Subban…. I mean, since contract talks will start soon?

3. Neither…I’m not even convinced that either of them will last this season. They certainly won’t be around next year.

4. Impossible to say 1-2-3-4. I will say that I expect Plekanec will have Bourque as his winger (and Gionta when he returns), Desharnais will have Pacioretty, Eller will have Galchenyuk, and White or Dumont will have the fourth line. I’ll leave it to others to assign #1, #2, and #3 line labels.

5. No. He has to be on the 1st pair this year. Any dip will be because the team is not quite as good as last year and because opponents are going to work around taking Subban out of his game. How Therrien reacts to that will go a long way to whether we see a dip or not.

About #5 and Therrien… I was really impressed how Therrien handled his bench. Maybe it was compared to Martin that I saw a lot of smart moves. But what happened at the end of the season? It seemed like half of what Therrien did blew up in his face. I guess that’s just what happens when things start to go sideways… well that, and your team forgets how to score and your goalie forgets how to stop pucks.

I have concerns in the same area. He strikes me as more a motivator, passionate styled coach than x’s and o’s. I thought I had heard rumblings during the early part of off season that Clement Jodoin was leaving the team, when I look on the team website he is still listed as Asst. Coach. In watching 24CH last season, he appears to be much of the tactician behind the coach schemes.

I thought Therrien handled his bench poorly and was lucky it did not bite him. But that is confirmation of my expectations, so grains of salt all around.

His early handling of Eller was appalling.

His use of PK Subban was insane.

His devotion to the swarm defense and failure to adapt late in the abbreviated season when other teams had figured it out did not bode well.

On the other hand, he kept Gally and Gally with the big club and sheltered them pretty well. He recognized that Prust was his Swiss Army Knife (although I think he knew that all along and was heavily involved in the Prust signing.) So there is that.

I am trying to remember exactly what my prediction was for Therrien 2.0 career longevity but if he is still around in 2015 it will start to hold back this team as its window opens.

1. Yes
2. Pre-season game. Love to watch the prospects in game situations.
3. Parros. Habs have too many D prospects ready to break through. The only way Murray sticks is if he takes Gorges’ spot.
4. Pleks, Eller, DD, Bournival (that’s for Trini 😉 )
5. Subban will be even better against the best, he thrives on competition.

I would wait to negotiate with him. He just won the Norris, his value can’t really get much higher. Lets see where he is for 82 games.

1. No
2. Pre-season game- some semblance of the real thing.
3. Murray
4. Pleks, Eller, DD, White.
5. Subban paired with Markov until Emelin’s return.
Bonus: I would always be challenging EVERY player to get better. Complacency leads to poor performances.

1. Maybe in paralympics
2. Both are bleah. Same goes for about half of the regular season NHL games
3. If they both do what they were brought to do and do it well I think there is no reason to not keep them beyond this season. I can’t see Murray being worse the Bouillon or Gorges
4. Sadly these seem to be our centers. Holy shit.
5. Was he not the first pair D before? Subban will be again one of the very very few Habs who will make it worth actually watching the games. Subban is 21st century Guy Lafleur (not that I ever saw him play)

BONUS: you don’t put the pressure on Subban – Subban puts pressure on you. Bergevin effed it up and now Subban will be dictating the terms.

Galchenyuk is the Lafleur….Subban is a modern day Chelios has Chelios started earlier…it took him a while to get where he got to eventually. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Chelios For those who don’t know read the bio on Chelios…quite the story…twice cut from Junior B teams after coming to Canada from the US …grew 3 inches and added 40 lbs of muscle …he was a late bloomer but PK reminds me of Chelios in his prime…a solid defender, a great offensive force and an edge to his game….PK is a little flashier than Chelios and has more rw skill but their games were pretty similar. IMO. Galchenyuk has a chance to perhaps outscore the Mats Naslunds best season…doubt he can get to Lafleur territory as the game has changed….but Naslund is a possiblity at some point.

110 points is going to be a very tough target unless the NHL somehow makes drastic moves to reverse the trend of declining scoring. We’re rapidly approaching dead-puck era numbers, where 100 points would be good enough to lead the NHL in points.

Last year, only Martin St. Louis (prorates to 102 points) and Crosby (prorated to 109 points, provided he stayed healthy for the rest of the season) were on pace to score 100 points last season. Ovechkin likely would have joined them, as he got off to a slow start (3 points in 8 games) but was really flying by the end.

1) Yes and will get blamed for being over-used by the end of the season.
2) Open practice – cause it’s cheaper. And the consession stand person at Brassard was friendly
3) Parros – We have d-men pushing at Murray but we have no enforcer pushing at Parros
4) Pleks, DD. Eller and White. Personally I think Eller steps past DD this year but being a two-way center he’ll be used in that 3rd line role
5) No. His performance will dip because its an 82 game season and he’ll hit a wall about 2/3rds of the way though the season.
B) He’s a number 1, play him like it.

1). YES
2). Open practice. Would love to see the Hab coaches at work.
3). Parrots. Murray will be replaced next season by Tinordi.
4). Pleks, Eller, DD, White
5). PK is destined to succeed in this league. He’s a star.
6). With the exception of Price, no one has more pressure on him then PK.

2. Pre-season. It’s a good chance to see some of our kids playing more minutes and different situations than we usually see them in.

3. Murray. If he plays like he has every year of his career except last year then there is no reason not to ask for his services.

4. Plex/Eller/DD/White…Unfortunately even though they are in that order we should play Eller on the 3rd line with the Gallys because the thought of DD playing with the Gallys is an absolute defensive nightmare.

5. He is one of the best d-men in the world, and he thrives on that confidence. His performance would not dip. And yes, I would be inclined to do that. Why on earth we do not use our best d-man as our #1 baffles me.

1. Probably, although I wish he’d take the time off
2. I’ve been to pre season game before wasn’t as fun, open practice just to check it out.
3. Murray, I have a funny feeling that our enforcer will be gone after this season.
4. pretty much the pl;ayers you just listed although I’d like chucky at center…
5. No
Bonus what ever line he plays on he’ll be great

1) Looking at their invited roster, I don’t see how he could be left off the team, although I don’t know the KHL guys. If he plays as well as he did last season, Andrei’s in. Fingers crossed, hope Alexei is too.

2) Any game is better than a practice to the average fan. Maybe a scout or an executive would get more out of a practice, but even a pre-season game will have more intensity and excitement than a practice. Bonus if you get to see some prospects you’ve heard of for a while but haven’t seen play.

3) Difficult. Douglas Murray is actually useful as a player, but there is a logjam on defence, he’s more likely to be squeezed out. George Parros is a marginal player, but if he fulfills the expectations, he doesn’t have anyone else vying for the 13th or 14th forward spot in the same manner in Hamilton. So I’ll say George Parros, but it’s only 51-49 percentage-wise.

4) Plekanec, Desharnais, Eller, Dumont(White)

5) No, the coaching staff will loosen the reins and ask him for even more this season. His production may tail off, the numbers might not be as spectacular this year, but he’ll play even better. And Marc Bergevin and Don Meehan will enter the next negotiations with those expectations I would think.

2. Which would you rather do – attend a pre-season game at the Bell Center, or watch an open practice? Why? Practice. I have been to pre-season games in Leaf Land, including Habs at Leafs and my recollections are seeing the best player on either team being rookie Mike Ribeiro and mid career Tie Domi. Need to wash that from my mind

3. Who is more likely to spend more than 1 year in Montreal: Parros or Murray? I hope neither but Parros. Murray is a short term hedge against Emelin absence and Tinordi youth. The Habs appear to be amassing 7th defensemen like they are trying to corner the market. While the team has a need for a 7th defenseman, I am not sure how much they need 3 of them. Arguably more than they need 1 facepuncher, but then I’m not making up the roster

4. Since MT says Galchenyuk will start on the wing, who are your 1-4 centers (in order) – Pleks, DD, Eller, White? Or…?Plekanec
Eller
Desharnais
White
I was trying to think up something clever to suggest that Desharnais ought to be playing the wing on a pure exploitation line and that White is probably interchangeable with 3 or 4 other options but I give up. Anyhow, this is not the year this has to be addressed.

5. If Subban is put on the 1st pair D, will his performance dip?

Ummmm… No? I don’t think Subban succumbs to pressure which is why he is ideal for MTL. He should be eating more minutes. He should be killing penalties. His points will continue to come from the powerplay.

BONUS: If you were the Habs, would you be inclined to put that pressure on Subban…. I mean, since contract talks will start soon?Whatever. Just sign him.

I have to say that this notion that people “attacked Berkshire” to me is ridiculous. it sounds like people FOR NO REASON just started hating the guy.

Let me tell you something, if YOU act like a jerk, people wil attack you to. And act like a jerk enough, they will attack quicker and with less provocation. And that’s what happened with Berkshire. The guy was absolutely obnoxious and immature. So of course people remember him that way. My hope would be that he’s matured. But other than the fact that most people found him to be horrible, the one other thing I’ve learned from this discussion is that he seems to have not matured. What should he care what we think over here. Why is he even on this site he supposedly thinks is beneath him (lol).

To demonstrate how difficult prospect assessments are, take on this challenge: rank the Habs top-9 forwards in terms of their all-around play (offence, defence, leadership, toughness, special teams play, etc.).

The point: I suspect we will see a pretty hefty amount of variability from poster to poster, and that is for a data set where most of us have a lot of input in the form of games we have watched them play.

The people that do this for the prospects usually have far less input into their assessments. We should probably take these things with a hefty grain of salt, even while acknowledging the tremendous work that goes into them.

Your list seems pretty spot-on to me, but there’s not much value in it. I mean, once you average out so many factors, what are you talking about? None of these guys is super-star level, at least not today, so it’s pretty close.

Kunitz has chemistry with Crosby and he is a relentless forechecker….I am actually always impressed with his tenacity and grit everytime I watch the Pens. I used to think of him as you do but he is really a diff’t palyer than he was in Anaheim…he does a lot of the dirty work for Crosby or Malkin and also has the offensive instincts to keep up with them and at the same time creat havoc in front. I think he definitely plays with Crosby or doesn’t play at all.

perhaps but you hit the nail on the head with “wonder” …it is a short tourney with little time to develop chemistry./..so any existing chemistry must be considered…not necessarily mandatory but a huge consideration given the format.

Missing Link Confirmed! There is a report out today that confirms that somewhere between ape and man existed a creature who was literate in mathematics and capable of memorizing and utilizing statistics? Who knew?http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=430671

me too…he actually used to play ball with a cousin of mine in BC and my aunt told me what a polite young boy he was,etc,etc and that he was the nicest kid ever and she couldn’t believe the animal he is on the ice. I wish he were a Hab but as a Bruin I have to dislike….much like Patrice Bergeron and Krejci who are two of the most underrated guys around!

I seldom do more than glance at EOTP. In the days when Robert L. ran it, I used to find his articles interesting but too wordy. Since he left, statistics have been in the ascendant, something I have little patience with, so I mostly ignore the site. But I read some of their criticisms of HIO, and found their wholesale dismissal of the site laughable. HIO is not very different from what it was when it was founded. Some excellent posters have left, others have climbed aboard. There were trolls at the beginning, there are trolls now, and I imagine there always will be. The same goes for stupidity; there has always been a certain amount of it, and there probably always will be. But there are many posters with a lot of hockey knowledge and insight, others with a great sense of humour, others who can argue a point logically and persuasively. Overall it’s a great forum for debate with a real sense of community, where posters are always ready to give each other tips or practical help on anything under the sun. I don’t appreciate hearing the site trashed. Cheers, everyone!

Is anyone else distressed when news sites run a story and feel the need to add community reaction, but instead of: “Joe Corsi, a mathmatician from Salmon Arm.” We now get: “One reader going by the name HockeyDude420”

All three shoot left, while Subban shoots right. It is pretty much that simple.

Subban has not played left defence at the OHL, AHL or NHL level. There is this strange assumption that he can just step in on the left side at the Olympics, despite the quality of the opposition only being the greatest offensive players in the world.

I would be well and truly shocked to see Babcock select any defenceman to play his off-side. The Olympics are not the time to gamble that a guy might be able to do it.

Completely agree. There isn’t an NHL defenseman that can wheel out of his zone while hold off opposing forecheckers (often bigger than him) with one hand on his stick and never (almost) losing control of the puck — NOT ONE. And he does it with SPEED. PK belongs on this team no ifs, ands, or buts.

Pk is one of the best puck moving defenceman in the NHL and is a huge threat on the PP. I hope he gets more time on the Penalty kill to showcase the defensive aspects of his game because people outside of Mtl only consider him to be an `offensive`Dman.

Enforcers and tough guys are about preventing intimidation,not injuries. If a player feels intimidated, he is not thinking about hockey anymore, so he is not “in the zone” where peak performance occurs. If a goon can help a player like Gallagher feel less intimidated, he has done his job. If he prevents a guy like Gorges from having to fight a guy like Fraser, he has done his job.

The Leafs-Bruins matchups last year were big snooze-fests because instead of fireworks, both sides decided that they can’t intimidate the other, so they just played hockey. Balance.

As long as Parros sits against a team like Detroit, the Habs will be fine. Playing Parros against the Leafs is not a disadvantage.

The best role that Parros can play is that he can serve as a deterrent without ever actually dressing. Unfortunately, he simply isn’t that good of a fighter, so teams will have no problem risking fights with him. He rarely wins in a convincing enough fashion for the fight to serve as a momentum changer.

Parros will play 2-5 minutes per game, get into a fight, and be a complete liability in every other aspect of the game when he is dressed.

As you can probably guess, I’m not a fan. He’s a great guy, like Laraque, but he’s finished as a hockey player. Like Laraque.

Chris, I learn so much from your posts, so this post is meant respectfully. Parros ended Colton Orr’s season in 2011-2012 with a last punch that wasn’t captured well on camera. It served as a launch-pad for I-Know-You-Want-To-Hear-From-Me Brian to rant about rats, when he had to send Orr down to the AHL when recovery was slow for Orr.

To be honest, any player can catch somebody with a punch that does crazy damage. Catch anybody clean with a punch and you can knock them out and do damage.

On the whole, however, Parros is a wrestler who isn’t really viewed as a particularly fearsome fighter among the players. He’s a great guy, and I’m sure he’s going to be popular in the room. I just question his effectiveness on the ice…he was absolutely brutal last season for the Panthers.

Agreed.Parros is not an intimidating Heavyweight,like a Gillies.Mirasty ,Erskine a or Jablonski but he is a respectable fighter. He has good reach,and change up but his balance is not the best. He has a 47% career win rate with almost all results by decision.

All enforcers are not afraid of each other, otherwise they would be out of a job. But I don’t think the average big defenseman who only gets into a few fights a year would want to go with Parros unless he had to. That’s the guy you want to intimidate.

You may be right about Parros being washed up as a hockey player, although it’s hard to judge anyone on that wretched Florida team last year, so I will save judgement. But as long as Buffalo and Toronto has Scott and Fraser also only playing 2-5 minutes, its still a level playing field.

For the record, I would rather see fighting taken out of hockey, but as long as it is a part of the rules, the Habs need an answer for intimidation tactics. The best teams can usually adapt to any style of play. The Flyers were having a good run with intimidation tactics in the 70s until they met Larry Robinson.

The Habs have seveal opponents with bvery tough customers who also play heavy or at least average minutes…if Parros can take Chara or Lucic off the ice…or at least be there to make them ansewer the bell should they get out of control he is in fact a huge deterrent. Sure he may not win but worst case scenario they have to miss time, risk injury and be accountable for their intimidating styles. This also leaves Prust (who is actually a very good hockey player) around to do the heavy lifting with a line and maybe try playing the odd game without swollen hands (doubt it will but the theory is good…but the guy is just may not be capable of sitting out a battle…that appears to be his nature).

The fighters and bigger guys usually only figth other tougher guys but they initmidate, run and occasionally injure regulars and with a guy like Parros around they will think twice before doing some of the things they do. I am normally not a fan of the enforcer….but with a team built like Montreal, so skilled but so fragile and seriously lacking backbone the Parros and Murray moves are exactly what the doctor ordered IMO.

I wouldn’t expect players like Lucic or Chara to fight players who’s only role is to fight. It’s a nice idea, but the coach wouldn’t allow it, and those two are smart enough to know it’s a terrible trade off. You saw how Lucic reacted to Laraque.

But the enforcers push them around and try to harass them as they normally do to other players….I have never seen Lucic so bad as when Laraques was following him around the rink. Chara as well…..it is nivce to have someone in their heads and it usually helps to ensure they don’t run anyone or know if they do they will be expected to answer the bell…in which case they will miss time.

We’ll see if that curtails Prust’s fighting. I have my doubts. He sees fighting as a big part of his role, and I don’t think he’s going to have the wherewithal to say “That guy just punched my linemate, but I’m going to wait and let Parros take care of it when he gets his next shift in 14 minutes.”

It might curtail his stage fighting, but he should be smart enough to avoid that crap anyways.